Hyderabad: Hundreds of people gathered at a five-star hotel on Monday to witness the launch of ‘Swallowing the Sun’ novel by Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri, former assistant secretary-general at the United Nations and Indian Ambassador.
Joint managing director of Apollo Hospitals Dr Sangeeta Reddy, Prof. Sunaina Singh, former vice-chancellor of Nalanda University, and former lieutenant governor of Delhi Najeeb Jung participated in the event.
The book weaves through the eyes of Malati, and delves into one of the most tumultuous periods in modern Indian history — the struggle for Independence. Malati’s fearlessness enables her to defy the patriarchal traditions of her time, pushing the book towards a women empowering narrative.
Being a valiant girl, and backed by her progressive father, she and her sister Kamala push the societal boundaries constantly, eventually becoming the first women in their family to go to college. They both end up in Bombay (now Mumbai), which was at that time a hotbed of political ferment, and are whirled by the currents of the battle for Independence. The book revolves around their ups and downs of love, compassion, loss and prejudice.
The launch was marked by engaging discussions between the author and Prof. Sunaina, where they discussed the nuances of the book, the liberty Lakshmi M. Puri took for the choices in the story, and other interesting angles in the novel. The author further signed her books, and many attendees had the opportunity to interact with the author.
